that's how people are describing the collection of brushfires that are now burning all over southern california, from tecate near mexico to santa barbara, 200 miles north. the multi-million dollar mansions in malibu, including some historic landmarks are not being spared.
while browsing the news, i saw this -
photo from flickr
also read that some areas near stevenson ranch are in danger. i have friends who live there and i am praying that the fires be put out soon so that no more damage to life, limb and property will be inflicted.
Showing posts with label los angeles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label los angeles. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
nuclear winter
Thursday, September 06, 2007
adios los angeles
I am bidding goodbye to a city I never thought I'd love as hard as I did, to a city I never liked in the beginning, to a city that was my home for the past eight years. Goodbye, LA. It has been fun.
I'm going to miss a lot of stuff: my apartment on Hyperion Ave (the bomb!), my desk at work, my friends, relatives, co-workers; Sanamluang (!), Red Corner Asia, Thai BBQ, Full House, Pho Cafe on Sunset, Rene Cafe, 7th and Fig, Macy's Plaza, The Grove, Pampas, Coffee Bean on Hillhurst, Starbucks on Prospect, Albertson's, Point Point Vermont, Bahay Kubo, Jollibee on Beverly, Cha Cha Cha, Alcove, Milk, Urth (Melrose and Beverly Hills), pinkberry, Vista, MTA 26... my tears are welling up. Kidding.
When I moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles back in '99, I was apprehensive. I had relatives in SoCal but that was it. LA for me was so sprawling and the people, a bit cold...actor and model wanna-bees, waiting for their time to shine, or their discoverers.
Through the years, LA grew on me. I fell in love with the city as I learned more about it. It's not hard to fall for LA and it's no wonder that millions keep on moving to this great city.
For me, I think I've served my time. This is the longest I have stayed in one place, in one city. I will leave my heart in LA, but I have to move on...
Type rest of the post here
Friday, August 17, 2007
back in LA, off to NY
arrived in los angeles late last night after a 13-hour flight with some minor delays. (saw sarah geronimo and her mom at the mabuhay lounge. they were with someone who i thought looked very, very familiar.) got out of immigration/customs almost around 10. baggage was already waiting for me. for some reason, eight flights arrived within the 20-minute period that our flight arrived so the lines at the immigration was really, really long, considering they had almost 15 counters open.
and as the title says, i'm off to new york as well. i haven't totally recovered from the jet lag and i'm off to a city that's three hours ahead. talk about screwing my body clock. why not. complaining? na-ah. swear!
we're joining the philippine fiesta in new jersey. piolo and pops are going to be the featured guests for the event. this is the biggest fil-am celebration in the east coast, and where there are fil-ams, we're there. hahaha. bad copy. bad.
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
mayor v 'fesses up
less than a month after he admitted to the public his separation from his wife of 20 years, our mayor from los angeles, antonio villaraigosa admitted yesterday that he has a relationship with Telemundo (an NBC-owned network) anchor Mirthala Salinas.
Mayor V told reporters, "I have a relationship with Ms. (Mirthala) Salinas, and I take full responsibility for my actions."
Villaraigosa and Salinas wait out a pause in filming on the north steps of the state Capitol. Salinas is now a news anchor on Telemundo 52. (Robert Durell / LAT)what's up with these big city mayors? first was new york's rudy giuliani, who had a very public feud with his wife when she found out that he was having uh, extra-curricular activities. then san francisco's gavin newsom was forced to admit a couple of months ago that he was carrying an affair with his best friend's wife.
and now this?
i covered much of mayor villaraigosa's political career, specially his oath-taking at the city hall back in 2005. his win was deemed historic because for the first time in decades, a hispanic man won the mayoralty post of the city of los angeles.
reading about him back then made me admire him. he triumphed over adversity because he was raised by a single mom who worked double- triple- jobs just to make ends meet. and when he married his wife, he took her last name too. back then, he was just antonio villar. his wife was corina raigosa. when they got married, it became villaraigosa. isn't that just sweet?
and now this?
Sunday, April 15, 2007
i heart jfk
jfk the airport, that is. it's like i was deprived of wi-fi access for the past few days that i was like a kid in disneyland when we arrived at the jfk airport yesterday to check in for our evening flight.
becaause of a storm that was going east, our flight was delayed by about an hour but the pilot was good that he probably oversped up there, if it was all possible.
so i'm back in la-la-land. the weather last night was a bit cold and today's a wee bit too windy. i slept until around noon. i really need this rest to recharge, for tomorrow's the start of yet another hectic work-week.
i'm going to make some important steps in the near future and my mind's still quite muddled. i'll write about it as soon as i get more details. in the meantime, i need to do some catching up.
Friday, December 22, 2006
winter solstice
Los Angeles Marks Winter Solstice, Welcomes the Cold Weather
GRIFFITH PARK – Los Angelenos led by councilmember Tom LaBonge gathered Thursday afternoon at the recently-reopened Griffith Observatory to mark the winter solstice on the spot of one of the most unobstructed and spectacular views of Los Angeles and the Pacific Ocean from the west terrace of the Observatory.
Dr. Edwin Krupp, the Obervatory’s director, joined LaBonge and about a hundred people as the sun set directly on the winter sunset line at 4:46 p.m.
“This is one of the year’s most beautiful natural occurrences and this year it is particularly significant because we are back at the Observatory to witness it,” said Councilmember LaBonge who joined other hikers from the intersection of Boy Scout Road and Vermont Canyon Road to walk the half-mile to the Observatory.
Winter solstice marks the first day of winter – when the sun is the farthest south – and is the shortest day of the year, in terms of the length of time elapsed between sunrise and sunset. Sunset occurred at 4:46 p.m. PST on Thursday, and was preceeded very closely by the exact time of the solstice, at 4:22 p.m. PST.
The solstice likewise marks the beginning of the sun’s return migration toward the northern hemisphere. This means that we will be experiencing a lengthening of daylight hours.
The celebration was almost cut short when the sun hid under thick clouds for a few minutes. LaBonge predicted that the sun would come out and that the people at the observatory would still be able to witness a beautiful sunset.
As if on cue, the sun indeed came out a few minutes later, much to the delight of those who trooped to the Observatory to welcome the new season. The sky was bathed in hues of orange, moments after the sun re-emerged from the clouds.
People can observe the winter solstice, an annual celestial event, on Griffith Observatory’s west terrace where the solstice, equinox, and lunar standstill lines are laid into the pavement.
Cold Weather in LA
Temperatures plunged to record levels early Tuesday in Southern California because of a very cold air mass that followed a weekend storm remained in place over the region.
Near-record lows were expected this week here in Southern California, where homeless shelters opened lounges to handle anticipated overflow after temperatures plunged to record levels the night before.
The cold weather was expected as calm winds and clear skies brought more frost or freezing conditions through early Wednesday, the National Weather Service said.
The temperature early Tuesday at Los Angeles International Airport was 39 degrees, tying the 1924 mark. In the high desert north of Los Angeles, the city of Lancaster shivered at 16 degrees, 2 degrees below the record low set in 1965. Nearby Palmdale was an icy 18. The old mark was 22 set in 1992.
Along the coast, early morning lows were 28 at Santa Barbara airport, 31 in Camarillo and 36 in Long Beach. All the temperatures were described by the NWS as preliminary record lows for the date.
Los Angeles City Councilmember Tom LaBonge and Griffith Observatory's directpr Dr. Edwin Krupp welcome winter at the observatory.Friday, December 15, 2006
portooooooooh's!
porto's is one of my favorite cake and pastry places here in LA. little-known fact: it's cuban. their desserts are just awesomely divine. definitely not for diabetics. their specialty remains to be the beautiful fruit tarts and the cheese rolls (which i love!). lines can be very long, but they have a very efficient staff and system. it's definitely worth the wait. promise.
not for the diabetics (and faint-hearted). a christmas tree made out of cream puffs adorn the top shelf of porto's. just looking at the stuff they have makes me dizzy. sugar high ito!
one of my absolute favorites (alongside the cheese rolls) is the cappuccino mousse. anything with a hint of coffee. not too seet, not too strong. yum.
sinfully rich chocolate cake that's moist and really tempting. 
nice to look at, better when devoured. Wednesday, December 13, 2006
imagine this
what would you feel if you had a brother, who passed away, and gave each one of you (there are five of you in the family, not counting the dead parents) ONE dollar each and gave the city of Los Angeles almost $500,000.00!
only in LA, and yes, truth is indeed, stranger than fiction.
Little is known about Theodore DiFiore, who died Nov. 17, 1990, at age 79 while living in a modest downtown apartment. But the money that he left — and that can now be used for anything the city desires — appears to be one of the largest bequests to Los Angeles in recent years.i would probably be sooo pissed.
According to DiFiore's handwritten will from 1976, which was updated several times before his death, each of his five siblings was to receive $1, said Robert Pasquinelli, a San Jose attorney handling the matter.
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